Stranger
by Vithian
Summary: How can one night change everything, especially when the person who starts it is a complete stranger?


**A/N: *sigh* I really need to stop with the one shots, don't I?  
Anyway, I apologise in advance if they're out of character. I don't have a good grip on Vexen and Marluxia yet, but I'm trying, so yeah... Any constructive criticism would be nice! I would really like some pointers as to where I can make them more in character.  
Warnings: Some mild language, Umm... I think that's it...  
DiZclaimer: You're gonna make me say it, aren't you? Me no owny!**

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If you went to the 7th Heaven bar on the night of the sixth, you would've found two men in their twenties, one a blond and one a red head. The blond would have his head down, filling out his university homework. The red head would be flirting with anything that moves, despite having a boyfriend, and drinking more than his weight in sake.

"Vexen, I swear, you're the only person I know who would bring his homework to a night club!" The blond looked up at the smirking red head, his green eyes dull and listless. He simply stared at the red head opposite him, before putting his head back down and trying to block out the loud music and provocative dancing around him.

"Come on! Talk to me!" If the blond had looked up and seen the red head, he would've scoffed at his attempt to look innocent. Axel can't do innocent. "Look, I'm sorry I dragged you out here, alright?" Axel sighed, and for a second, Vexen believed that he really meant it. But the second passed, and the flirtatious, confident, over the top Axel was back. "But come on! Look at all these hot guys!"

"You have a boyfriend Axel. One that gets jealous easy at that too." The blond didn't look up, still trying to figure out the next problem on his trigonometry homework.

"Roxy doesn't get jealous!"

"He punched Kairi because she was hitting on you."

"Oh yeah… That was hilarious! God, the look on her face!" Axel put his drink down, laughing uncontrollably. Whoever said Axel didn't have a one track mind never tried to have a conversation with him.

"When can I leave?" Vexen looked up, pleading with his eyes. He _really_ didn't want to stay here. It was loud, bright, obnoxious… Kind of like Axel. Why were they friends again?

"Talk about drama with a capitol D… Just… Just let me go dance? To one song?" Regrettably, Vexen nodded. The red head let out a whoop of joy, threw his hands up and sprinted to the dance floor, instantly disappearing from view. Sighing, Vexen just got back to his work. Why was there so much?

After ten minutes, it was obvious that Axel wasn't going to come back by himself. Vexen really didn't want to try and find him amongst all the dancers, but the red head was also his ride home. Walking was an option, but a twenty minute walk when it was just approaching midnight wasn't something he looked forward too. However, it was getting more and more desirable by the minute.

"Why is someone so gorgeous doing work at a bar instead of meeting people?" A voice spoke, right next to Vexen's ear. The blond tensed, not wanting to turn around. The voice was deep and seductive, but held no malice. Slowly turning around, Vexen found no one there. Relieved, but confused, he turned back around.

Only to come face to face with two deep blue orbs that were _very_ close to his own green ones. And, although he'd never admit, the blond squeaked.

"Well?"

"W-What?" Blinking, Vexen tried, and failed, to form an articulate response. It wasn't easy with the other mere centimetres from his face.

"Don't worry about it, because I don't want you talking to anyone except me."The blue was suddenly gone, replaced with a view of a man with pink hair leaning over the table. He was wearing a black top with a strange motif on it and black skinny jeans, chains hanging off from several points. He had a large black jacket on, which had gold threading all up the sleeves. The man took a seat where Axel had been just ten minutes prior and just stared at the blond opposite him.

"What?" Feeling more confident now that the punk was out of his face, Vexen snapped a quick question.

"Nothing. My name's Marluxia, by the way."

"Why the hell would I care?" Going back to his work, Vexen hoped that Axel would choose now to come back so he could get out of here.

"Y'know, usually, when one introduces themselves, they expect the other to do the same." Marluxia looked at Vexen, his head slightly on one side, making him look like an innocent and curious teenager, when in reality that was probably the furthest from the truth.

"Y'know, a number of stalkers and rapists like choosing victims whose names are known to them." Vexen didn't even raise his head, openly mocking the punk opposite him.

"That's bullshit and we both know that." Marluxia's voice gained a slightly hard edge to it, before reverting back to its previous seductiveness. "Tell me your name?"

"… Vexen." Sighing, the blond resigned himself to just saying his name and getting it over with. He was leaving in a second anyway, whether Axel came back or not. If he slept with some slut because he was completely wasted and Roxas broke up with, that was his own problem.

Scribbling down one final answer, his maths work was complete. So picking up the many textbooks he'd brought, slipping them into a messenger bag, Vexen prepared to leave.

"Hey, you can't leave now! We were just getting to know each other!" Marluxia started to protest, and would've continued had Vexen not cut him off.

"Look, we both know that you just want to sleep with me, and we both know that that's not going to happen, so just save yourself the trouble and go pay some whore to satisfy whatever kinky desire you want, okay? Good." Walking away, the blond wondered if he'd been a bit cruel, but someone needed to put that punk in his place, and it seemed it was going to be him.

**

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**

It was _freezing_! God, how Vexen wished he'd waited for Axel. Unfortunately, he couldn't go back now. He needed to get home. However, Vexen really wished he'd worn more than a t-shirt and jeans.

So, walking down the street, rubbing his arms and just trying to ignore the stares from those that 'worked the night shift', Vexen's mind drifted to his science project that he was doing. It was worth close to thirty percent of his final mark, and usually, the blond knew exactly what to do. But this time? He was stumped.

While he was musing, he failed to notice that someone had been running behind him, calling out his name. When said person finally caught up to him, he saw how cold the blond was and slipped his jacket over his thin shoulders.

When the rough material fell on his shoulders, Vexen whipped around and saw the bright pink of Marluxia's hair.

"You're only proving my point that you're a stalker." Without knowing, Vexen let that slip. _'Oh well, too late to take it back.'_ Vexen turned, and started to walk again. The jacket helped, he could barely feel the cold now.

Marluxia fell into step with Vexen, but didn't say a thing, even though the blond knew he was freezing.

"Why are you following me?" Vexen couldn't keep it in any longer. Marluxia was giving him the creeps, though his death glare did keep the crack whores away.

In response, Marluxia simply looked at Vexen. This time, it wasn't an innocent look, like in the bar, no; this look was one of hurt. Real hurt.

"Because, I like you." Marluxia leaned down, invading Vexen's personal space. "But, like you said, you're obviously not interested." The pinkette turned to leave, throwing a small wave over his shoulder. Looking up, Vexen realised that he was at his apartment.

_'When did that happen?'_

**

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**

_"Vexen? What the hell man? You just ditched me at the bar! You know I do stupid things when I'm alone! If I hadn't come to my senses, I would currently be in a hotel bed trying to think of an excuse for Roxas!"_

Chuckling at the message Axel left on Vexen's phone, the blond knew Axel wasn't really mad at him. More at himself. Axel was a player, it was that simple. He'd been a lot worse before Roxas came along, and ever since they got together, he's been trying to cut down on his habit of not thinking of the consequences. Of course, whenever he got drunk, all common sense (what little he had) flew out the window. So he usually dragged someone out with him, to stop him from doing something stupid. That person was usually Vexen, since it was a reliable fact that the blond never got drunk.

Vexen himself never wanted to go out to a bar, but sometimes the red head convinced him. He always regretted it the next morning though, because although Vexen didn't drink, he didn't bother trying to stop Axel before he did something stupid.

Stupid things were Axel's specialty. He was messed up before he met Roxas, always staying up all night drinking, grades in the toilet and making out with any random bar chick that would have him.

That all changed when the short, temperamental blond entered his life. Roxas had no patience, but he kept Axel in check. Since the two got together, Axel only gets completely wasted once a month, if that, he's got a solid D average and he only picks up random bar chicks if he's completely off his face.

Roxas is, however, one to get jealous easy, so Axel tries extra hard to keep himself in line.

Thinking about those too, Vexen's thoughts drifted to Marluxia. He still had the man's jacket, which he'd put on the chair in his living room. Despite trying extremely hard to not think of him, the blonds' thoughts had drifted towards Marluxia more than once that night.

But there was no time to think of that now. Uni was starting in little under an hour, and Vexen had to hurry up and get ready.

So, packing the few books he needed into his messenger bag, grabbing a slice of toast and locking his small, two room apartment, Vexen began the trek down the many flights of stairs. The elevator had broken, so he was forced to take the stairs. He didn't really mind, it just meant he had to leave five minutes earlier.

Unlike most twenty year olds, Vexen owned no transport system of his own. Walking was no chore to him and even though he won the scholarship to get to uni, that didn't mean he had any more money. His family, well, they didn't particularly care for Vexen. Not when they had his prestigious younger sister winning art competitions across the nation. And she was _normal…_

With a sad, regretful smile, Vexen finished his toast and tried to think of anything but Marluxia and his family. If they can so be called.

**

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**

_"Vexen, it's very unlike you to not complete your work. Wouldn't want to lose that scholarship, would you?"_

Those words haunted him the entire day. Lose his scholarship? He couldn't! He had nothing else! Severely shaken, the blond started the walk back to his apartment, not thinking at all, which is something rare.

"Can I have my jacket back?" Looking up, the blond saw a much too familiar face leaning against the wall next to the entrance to the apartment block.

"Sure." Vexen deadpanned, all resistance sucked out of him. Marluxia still seemed to be kind of angry about what was said, but Vexen didn't even notice as he led the other up the stairs. Nor did he notice the brown paper bag he was carrying.

If one watched the two climb the stairs, one would assume they don't even know each other. They weren't avoiding looking at each other; neither really cared. So wrapped up in their own little issues, that they don't notice the bigger picture.

Pulling his keys out of his pocket, Vexen opened the door to his meticulous apartment. Sometimes, even he wondered if he suffered from Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. He just couldn't ignore a mess. Quickly depositing his bag next to the door, he went and collected Marluxia's jacket.

"I'm sorry." Vexen had walked in holding the black jacket, to find Marluxia standing just inside his apartment, head down.

"Why?" Vexen would rather have his hair chopped off then admit that he was feeling guilty over what he said too Marluxia, and he loved his hair. But it wasn't like Marluxia had anything to really be sorry over.

"I was being unfair and forceful, but it's just… That wasn't the first time I'd seen you come in. A couple of other times, I saw you come in with that red head. But he'd always leave halfway through the night, and you'd always stay behind. Sometimes there was someone else with you, but eventually, they all went and did the something else. Except you." Marluxia had, somehow, gotten closer to the blond, regret in his eyes. "There was one time, you looked over at me. Not me, exactly, but I saw something in your eyes that scared me.

"There was no life in your eyes. Nothing at all. And I wanted to be the one who filled them with life." Marluxia tugged the jacket out of Vexen's grip and turned back to the door, not wanting to hang around any longer than necessary. He had apologised, he had explained himself and he couldn't bear to hear whatever cruel and hurtful thing the blond had to say now.

Vexen, on the other hand, couldn't think straight. He had seen into the other man's eyes, had seen the sincerity in them. But he didn't know what to think. Even though it was kind of embarrassing, he had never had a first kiss. Romance had just never been a major thing for him. After revealing this little fact to his friends, they'd made it their mission to get him hooked up with someone. But Vexen didn't pay them any attention, simply ignoring the many women (and men, they could never be too sure) that came his way.

Honestly, he had no interest in women. That was why his family had abandoned him so many years ago. He'd try many times to get into contact with them, to try and see his little sister. He actually suceeded once, catching her after one of her many contests. But she started to scream at him, about how he was a monster, how he was unnatural and sinful, going against God's wishes. So he decided to simply give up on love all together.

But after hearing what Marluxia had to say, Vexen felt… Anxious? Nervous? Whatever it was, he was sure he couldn't let the pinkette walk out of his life, not after he had made such an impact. In one night, no less.

So, since his brain was down for the count due to the many circles it was running in, Vexen acted on instinct. An instinct to reach out and stop the man before he left. An instinct to ignore the questioning gaze he was sent. An instinct to ignore the many doubts that suddenly made themselves known.

An instinct to have his very first kiss with a stranger he met in a bar last night.

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**A/N: Umm, for now, this is a one shot, but I might continue if and when I get the inspiration.  
And there was a bit more, but I felt like killing you all with a cliff hanger-y type of ending! FEEL MY WRATH!  
I would really love some feedback for this!  
~Vithian**


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